Discovery date 11 October 1985 Discovered 11 October 1985 Orbits Sun Asteroid group Jupiter trojan | MPC designation 3793 Leonteus Absolute magnitude 8.8 Discovery site Palomar Observatory | |
Discovered by C. Shoemaker
E. Shoemaker Pronunciation leɪˈɒntiəs (lay-on'-tee-əs) Named after Leonteus
(Greek mythology) Alternative names 1985 TE3 · 1951 WT1
1961 TB · 1973 UJ3
1978 GO · 1980 KX1
1986 XO Discoverers Carolyn S. Shoemaker, Eugene Merle Shoemaker Similar Jupiter trojan, 911 Agamemnon, Solar System, 588 Achilles, 624 Hektor | ||
3793 Leonteus (LAY-on'-TEE-əs), provisional designation 1985 TE3, is a carbonaceous Jupiter trojan from the Greek camp, approximately 86 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered by American astronomer couple Carolyn and Eugene Shoemaker at the U.S Palomar Observatory, California, on 11 October 1985.
The dark C-type asteroid is orbiting in the leading Greek camp at Jupiter's L4 Lagrangian point, 60° ahead of its orbit (see Trojans in astronomy). It orbits the Sun at a distance of 4.7–5.7 AU once every 11 years and 11 months (4,348 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.09 and an inclination of 21° with respect to the ecliptic. The first used precovery was taken at Goethe Link Observatory in 1961, extending the asteroid's observation arc by 24 years prior to its discovery, while the first unused observation at McDonald Observatory dates back to 1951.
Several photometric light-curve observations have been performed. The best rated analysis by Stefano Mottola and Anders Erikson using the Dutch 0.9-metre Telescope at La Silla, Chile, in June 1994. The light-curve gave a rotation period of 7000562249999999999♠5.6225±0.0005 hours with a brightness variation of 6999240000000000000♠0.24±0.01 magnitude (U=2+). Other analysis gave similar results. In addition, an ambiguous light-curve by Robert Stevens at the U.S. Center for Solar System Studies (CS3), California, also rendered an alternative solution of 7001112200000000000♠11.22±0.01 hours, or twice a long as all other periods measured (U=2).
According to the space-based surveys carried out by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite, IRAS, and the Japanese Akari satellite, the asteroid measures 86.3 and 87.6 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.072 of 0.070, respectively. NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, however, finds a lower albedo of 0.042 and hence a much larger diameter of 112.1 kilometers. The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link derives an albedo of 0.0784 and a diameter of 86.4 kilometer, in line with the 14 observations made by IRAS.
The minor planet was named from Greek mythology after Leonteus, a hero of the Trojan War, who attempted to win a competition among the Greek warriors to see who could throw an iron meteorite the farthest. However, he lost the game to his associate, Polypoites, after whom the minor planet 3709 Polypoites is named. Naming citation was published on 27 August 1988 (M.P.C. 13482).